Alexis bistro, the gardens mid valley

another food review...

Alexis, The Gardens
Lot F209,
First Floor,
The Gardens,
Mid Valley City,Kuala Lumpur.
Tel: 03-2287 2281

went there for my 21ST birthday surprise dinner.

gorgeous array of desserts, which is alexis's specialty...

yep, their specialty is the cakes. which i have to admit looks sooo good and tempting and taste just as nice too. the tiramisu is a must try. its a combination of flavours and texture that goes together so well.the nutty topping, the creamy filling..just heavenly :) and the nutty chocolate meringue is pretty good as well. light and chocolaty and topped generously with pecans and macadamia nuts.

the nutty chocolate meringue
the tiramisu

the main dishes..

chicken pot pie (rm20)
this is my dish. the pie was not bad. the filling was creamy and packed with chicken and mushroom. i recently found a recipe for this dish and I'm going to try it out soon :) fries...are normal. and it is served with some assorted vege, which was kinda sour (must be the drizzling or the sauce) but i ate everything up anyway..

the nyonya mee siam was quite ordinary.

nasi kerabu was quite nice, i loved the sambal.

spaghetti meatball was OK as well.

and Vietnamese noodles..well, i don't really fancy beef nor Vietnamese food..but it was allright.

can't really comment on these dishes cos i only had a sample of it..

nyonya mee siam
nasi kerabu (rm20)
spaghetti meatball (rm36)
Vietnamese beef noodles (rm20)

Ok, one thing i must mention about this place is the POOR SERVICE. Our waitress was so sulky and did not once smile or attempt to be courteous. when we asked for plain water, she haughtily said that they don't serve plain water and that we must order the ridiculously priced MINERAL water from the menu. and later during the meal, Boris asked another waiter for water and the brought it for us...and we were totally speechless...

and when Kajen asked if there is a dessert menu, she replied (rather rudely) that they did not have and we were to look at the counter. so we went..and when kajen tried to take a photo of the pretty cakes, she stopped us again. i mean, its not like we were going to send the photos to other bakeries so that they can copy or anything. i mean...its Ok if you don't allow photo taking but the way she stopped us is as if we were committing some crime or something. sheeessh.

perhaps they were short staffed or maybe she was having a bad day.i'm giving them the benefit of the doubt..but that is not the way to treat your customers. why are we paying the 10% service tax for again?

hmmm...well, this part spoilt the whole dinner a little bit. but luckily the company was great (the most important!!) and the food was good, the dessert excellent. we were even discussing about why the service was so bad. for a more humorous approach, click here to read kajen's blog. LOL. about the spy and a sabotage mission! after all, it was my birthday celebration so can't get too grumpy about it, can i? but i would think twice about going there again though. maybe just for the dessert :P

food&drinks: 7/10 (dessert deserves a 8.5/10 though)
price: 5/10
ambiance: 7/10
service:3/10
overall: 6/10

dim sum @ restoran clan, sri petaling

so, it was the last breakfast with James (for another 2 months or so)
we wanted to have dim sum but not sure where to go, so i said
"we drive around and see which shop has the MOST people then we go there" and this tactic works most of the time :P

so we parked the car at the back lane (parking is a nightmare also) and walked along the shops to do a survey. and we came to this shop....

Restoran Clan
140, Jalan Radin Anum, Sri Petaling
57000 Kuala Lumpur
(its opposite the fishing pond)

for the map, click here

which was bursting with people..enjoying their meal and standing around waiting for seats. and since there was only the two of us, we got a seat pretty quick. service was not bad, except that they forgot my chee cheong fun :( which i was looking forward to. and when they brought it i was too full so i did not take it :(

this is their specialty.The "kai woh pau" which is a sort of "tai pau" its like a "loh mai kai" in a pau. something very different and not too bad but it is very very filling (cos of the glutinous rice) so its best you share if not you won't be able to sample the other dim sum. the assorted dim sum we ordered. all is quite nice (well, i did not try the century egg dim sum)

and this is the "fried stuff" prawn in a crispy outer shell. it was nice, the prawns were fresh and crunchy and the sauce complimented it.

and for dessert, tau fu fah with lychee. very unique. its quite firm (the tau fu far) and has a rather milky taste. comes with two pieces of lychee. i quite liked it.

the whole meal cost about 30 ringgit. we ate ALOT. i shall bring my parents there next time and try the chee cheong fun and the cute little yam basket!

food&drinks: 7.5/10

price: 7/10

ambiance: N/A its a typical shop...very crowded!

service:7/10

overall: 7.5/10

lunch@pizzeria bella italia, SS12 subang jaya

I finally got around to trying this Italian restaurant in SS12 which was recommended by Evelyn.
its so near my house but yet, we never dine in here before..
we (my mum, sis and i) were on the way back from seremban and decided to have lunch before going home. so my brilliant sis suggested this place cos i did keep mentioning it. hehe :P

Pizzeria Bella Italia
14, Jalan SS12/1B
Subang jaya
opening hours: 11.30am to 3pm and 6pm to 1030pm

(its opposite SJMC/Sheraton Subang, the same row as 7eleven. this shop is at the end of the row)

the deco and interior is very cozy and classic. with dim lights, wooden chairs and tables draped in table cloth, little trinkets and paintings all over.

i see grapes, aubergines, cauliflower dangling from the ceiling :P


the spaghetti prima vera

and since it was noon, we decided to order the set lunch. priced from rm9.90++ you get a main meal, soup of choice (minestrone or cream of mushroom), a soft drink (pepsi/coke)
the price varies depending on the main meal you select... very worth it:)

the menu is very varied with many kinds of pasta, pizza, risotto and other western food.

i ordered the set meal with spaghetti prima vera. its basically pasta with vegetables ans mushrooms in a creamy tomato sauce. well, its the first time I've tasted cream based tomato sauce, and this dish did not disappoint me! its not too cheesy (not that i mind it being otherwise) and very flavourful. creamy and absolutely satisfying.

my sis went for the classic spaghetti cos from the description (spaghetti cooked with garlic and olive oil) it sounded abit like aglio olio. but its something quite different. it was served with real chili (which she claims is not hot!) olives and garlic. quite a unique thing :) not bad, but i prefer my dish...

the classic spaghetti

our side order, garlic bread (rm5.80)for mummy cos she "wasn't so hungry" (it actually comes in 5 pieces, the first piece was grabbed off its plate before i could snap a photo)

it was really good and topped up generously with garlic and butter. crispy and yummy
and this is the STAR of the day. Cream of mushroom soup. i know it doesn't look too appetising but this is the perfect example of "don't judge a book by its cover" its made of REAL mushroom and not from a packet. its creamy and you can actually taste the mushrooms. one of the best mushroom soup I've ever tasted. two thumbs up!!

last but not least, the tiramisu! (rm9.00) slightly different from the one at italiannes, this one does not have a strong liquor taste. its sponge cake layered with ice cream. its quite good, with a combination of chocolate and coffee taste..

this pizzeria is run by real Italian people..so the food was authentic. definitely worth another visit, probably to try the other food.

ratings:

food&drinks: 8/10 (mushroom soup gets a 9/10)

price: 7.5/10

ambiance:8.5/10 (parking is a nightmare though)

service:8.5/10

overall: 8/10

mini SJ reunion

met up with some of my high school friends on 24th july in Asia cafe. i call it "mini" cos only 10 people came..
and sadly i could only stay for an hour cos i had a dinner to attend at the gardens (my surprise dinner)
but it was good to catch up and all.
and i provided snacks. hehe. carrot cake muffins ^-^

bubu, crissy and hong ping
evie, me and sarah kate
us girls
the guys

My phone recently went nuts, and apparently there was a problem with the phone's software. so they had to reset everything and so i LOST all my contacts, messages and photos. this is so SAD :(
so if i ask who's sending the msg, pls don't feel "terasa" ok? its not my fault!

singapore trip

a group photo at the hotel lobby on the last day


I'm have lots of stuff to blog about...

This time is about my trip to singapore with James, Jane, Bee Ling & her siblings..

It was from 18th to 20th july (just in time for the spore sale, BUT my main aim wasn't shopping..)
When i came home from penang on 17th i was so sick, running a slight fever with a badly congested nose and cough that i was willing to see the doctor without any fuss. so unlike me, but i felt really miserable and horrified at the thought of cancelling the trip!! :(

anyway..the doctor gave some pills (panadol, psedoephedrine and loratidine) and recommended a good rest (no, i did not tell him in was about to go to spore the next day!!)

i went home feeling drained and woozy. managed to gulp down some porridege and slept for 10 hours straight. i really needed that. woke up at 7 plus and then only packed..so last minute. thank God i was feeling so much better.

went to bill's house where her mother fed us with lots of yummy kuih and cakes from indonesia..

left for s'pore at 1030am

stopped at JB for a quick lunch and to pump petrol..

took some time at the immigration department cos they were quite strict...

then we were off to SINGAPORE!

DAY 1

3PM: reached the hotel, settled down and get ready for some shopping (the malls were never ending!) dinner and a short night tour of singapore

we stayed at the Grand Central hotel along Orchard road (great location that comes with a price!!)

According to my mum, this is where we stayed during our last visit to singapore (when i was SIX with no recollections of anything other than the stuff my parents said and what i see in the photos we took!)

then we had dinner at a hawker centre just outside our hotel (sooo convenient). the food was so-so. Malaysian hawker food is so much BETTER. not to mention cheaper. but well, it wasn't that bad and the style of cooking was a bit different too.

and then after that, bee ling drove us around (with james as the navigator) and then we saw this floating ship with ppl hanging on to it and singing opera songs or something. it was so funny.. we were all so exicited and made bill turn two rounds. but sadly there wasn't any parking spots (unlike Malaysians who are creative parkers) so we couldn't stop to see :(

and then we went to the huge ferris wheel (don't know what its called) just to have a look and to snap a few photos. it was far too pricey and its all the same (cos I've been to the eye of malaysia..)

the ferris wheel. Jane, Bill, Mei Jun and I

and since we were all "kutu malam" and didn't see the point of hanging out in the hotel rooms (Boring!!) we decided to walk along orchard road in search of some good food for supper. thats when we came across the Xin wang hong kong stlye cafe!! (food review done already!!) singaope has so many other stuff that is not available in malaysia (NOT FAIR!!) esp junk food and CHOCOLATES. and they even have this Mc Cafe (under MCd) that serves yummy desserts. sighhhhhh...

we went back and planned for the next day...slept at 2am plus. which seems to be quite normal nowadays ;p

DAY 2

we decided to go on our own because we wanted to "tour" singapore. We got a one day tourist pass for $8 that entitiles us to unlimited MRT and public bus for a whole day. what a great deal :)

10.30am: left the hotel and headed to the nearest MRT station

the ever so convinient MRT station. why can't malaysia's public transaport be as good????

first stop: CHINATOWN!!!
and the first thing we saw was this dress shop. Jane and I went nuts! haha. Sorry dear dear you had to wait for us to do our shopping! it was a nice place, quite organized and they have many interesting stuff for sale..

had brunch at chinatown complex, where we were spoilt for choices. the food court was so huge jane and i almost got lost (malu-nya!)

i only bought ONE floral tube top for $10 (that is RM24!!) See, i have strong will power! hahah

brunch at chinatown complex. im holding a super sweet soya milk with "pearls"

second stop: Little India

We just walked around, admiring all the trinkets and sari and all.

next stop: Bugis street

they have the longest and largest street mall. and boy was it crowded! so many people so it wasn't nice to walk also. plus the stuff they have were on the cheap side. erm in terms of quality. but there were plenty of malls, and there was one mall that reminded me of the curve cos they have the semi open concept mall.

4th stop: to habour front

we caught a public double decker bus to haw paw villa. paid $1 to enter the 10 gates of hel exhibition. quite scary, and i don't think ANYONE can escape any punishment >.<

5th stop: back to habour front and then to sentosa island via sentosa express bus

we intially wanted to take the cable car but since it was so expensive ($13!!) we took the express bus insted. reached sentosa at almost evening. too bad we missed the SOS (sounds of the sea), was really looking forward to watch it :(

we took a ride on the sky-ride (it was fun and the view was amazing!!) and then the luge ride. i had difficulty controlling the luge at first so james and jane zoomed down leaving me behind:( so i took my own sweet time...

unfortunately, it started raining cats and dogs. don't know if its a blessing cos the SOS show was partially open air! still, i wanted to watch it badly :( nvm, there is always a next time. so we took a quick tour in the tram. but since it was already at night, we could not see much. the resorts in sentosa looked so luxurious...

the sentosa express bus. $3 for a to and fro ride

at the luge ride, i was the Last to arrive down :(posing before we got on the sky ride.we took the sky ride up and the luge ride downthe view from the sky ride. holding on to the camera from such great heights is rather scary >.<

6th stop: clarck quay

took the bus back to mainland then to clark quay, with the most happening night life! there were sooo many clubs/pubs/bar/ fancy restaurant with all sorts of themes. the most eye catching one would be the one with a "clinic" theme. they used wheelchairs as chairs and the screens and all. so creative, where do these ppl get their ideas from???

7th and last stop of the day (Phew~): orchard road

we got back to orchard road and then for a quick supper at cinelesuire (again) more specifically at Pastamania, but sadly it did not meet up to my expectation. my mushroom cream pasta was so bland :(

and finally back to grand central hotel at 12 plus. thats 14 hours non stop.. posed with our new clothes (yes, we are all vain. haha )

and only selected photos can be posted up :P thats my top from chinatown and james's top from new urban male.

and then a much needed sleep after an tiring but very well planned day..

DAY3 (last day)

went to return the singapore tourist pass in orchard road and bee ling got her "first ride" on the mRT :p Then we took a long walk along orchard to get back to the hotel. had ice cream in waffle for breakfast :P

checked out, walked to cinelesuire (yet again) food court for lunch before heading home!!

singapore is a nice place, its so much cleaner! haha. and the stuff on sale was good too, too bad i didn't have enough money to go on a shopping spree :( sadddd

anyway..it was a fun vacation :) and i think this post is getting too long and draggy so i better stop. have yet to blog about penang!!!

my 21st birthday-part one

not to worry, there is only two parts. and a pre birthday also in penang :)
it was the day before my birthday where bee ling and jane already "booked" me for a dinner in ALEXIS BISTRO (food review later) at The Gardens, mid valley...

well, the "surprise" was....
Kajen
De Jun
Yee Yoon &
Boris!

thanks so much for coming and for the gifts as well. it really made me happy :) and i enjoyed your company alot!!

a group photo...

with my two besties...and one is my future housemate.

cute pose! hehe ^_^
the tiramisu cake was to die for!!!
and my birthday cake!
and the gorgeous gifts from them. a pink handbag which i adore cos its so stylish yet practical and can keep lots of stuff and has many compartments so i can find my stuff easily.i love it!!!
and ooo, this bling bling necklace which would go sooo well with a little black dress!!

thanks to all again!! i had a great time! :)